Kathryn,

My 2 1/2 year old daughter has the exact same response to milk products as
your 3 year old: immediate face rash (sometimes a few spots on her stomach
and buttocks, as well), then delayed cramps and diarrhea.  I don't actually
know for a fact if this is a histamine response or not, since she has not
been tested.  (I live in the Netherlands and they don't test children here
until they are at least 5 years old.)  However, my understanding is that
false negatives and positives are so common with the skin-prick test,
especially in children, that it's better to diagnose by symptoms rather than
test results.  And with a rash and a family history of allergy (I'm allergic
to cats,  pollen, dustmites, etc.), I assume immune system response is in
play here.

MY QUESTION FOR ALL PARENTS out there is: When your child's response to milk
does not appear to be violent or life-threatening, where do you draw the
line on what he/she can or cannot ingest?  E.g., Kathryn says she lets her
daughter indulge in chocolate once in a while.

FOR KATHRYN: Do you notice a response to this?

To a small piece of chocolate, my daughter would develop an immediate rash,
but probably no intestinal response.  Sometimes she even develops the rash
when she eats something that I was unaware had milk proteins in it.  For a
while, we thought she might be allergic to something else as well, so we
engaged in a new elimination diet and discovered just milk and raw eggs (not
cooked eggs) were the problem.  So now I'm assuming when she has a reaction
that the "natural flavors" or "emulsifiers" in the new food she ate were
derived from a milk protein.  And, then we avoid that food in the future.
At this point, I try to avoid all food additives because I just don't know
which ones are bothering her (it's more than only the obvious caseinates and
whey products).  She's very sensitive to the milk protein, but because her
reaction is so mild (just a rash unless she's ingested large quantities), I
sometimes let her indulge in something that I know will make her break out
(i.e., something with milk protein derived additives, not actual milk
products).  But when I let her do this I always worry "What if she develops
worse symptoms?"  And I know the research shows that in most cases of food
allergies in children, if the offending substance is completely avoided for
two years the child outgrows the allergy (this is for mild food
allergy/sensitivity, NOT lactose intolerance or serious allergic response).
So, is it counter-productive to allow mild reactions during that two year
period?  Does anyone know?

Thanks in advance,
Cheryl